Internationally Acclaimed Puppeteer And Musician At Muhlenberg
Muhlenberg College presents, in assocation with Baker Artists-in-Residence, International Artists Michael Vogel and Charlotte Wilde: FIGURENTHEATER WILDE & VOGEL performing [Exit. A Hamlet Fantasy on April 29 at 8 pm and April 30 at 2 pm.Monday, April 24, 2006 01:59 PM
For ticket information, please go to: www.muhlenberg.edu/tickets.
Michael Vogeland Charlotte Wilde have traveled from Stuttgart, Germany, to perform and teach as the Baker Artists in Residence at Muhlenberg College. Vogel, a puppeteer, and Wilde, a musician, have toured to more than 20 countries and produced ten new works since establishing Figurentheater Wilde and Vogel in 1991. [Exit. A Hamlet Fantasy has won two Grand Prix awards in Poland, at the International Puppet Festival and the 1st International Festival of Solo Animators Theater, and six more festival prizes in international competition in Germany, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
Inspired by the phenomenon of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, [EXIT. A Hamlet Fantasy is a theatrical collage for puppeteer and musician. The innovative fusion of sound, text and music was directed by frequent collaborator Frank Soehnle, founder of the figuren theater tübingen. In this 90-minute fantasy, Hamlet deftly raises from the grave the decayed remains of those who suffered with him in life. Vogel’s exquisite handling of space and material allows the puppeteer to remain transparent, willing his life to escape into the inanimate forms. Wilde simultaneously provides haunting, trembling and sometimes raging music and manipulates the electronic sound effects and stage lighting.
The 6-week campus residency also includes an original student ensemble work entitled Emigré (April 27-28 at 8 pm) in the Dorothy Hess Baker Theatre. Coordinating and participating in the residency is Tim Averill, theatre faculty and professional scenic designer at Muhlenberg College. Averill studied with the artists in Prague last year and describes the compelling work of Wilde and Vogel as artistic genius. Emigré is 'object theatre' which explores the trials and tribulations of students' ancestors in their journey to America. The improvised and experimental work of the students is set to music and sound arranged by Charlotte Wilde and directed by Michael Vogel. Tim Averill has designed the stage lighting to accompany their stories.
